Got lower-back pain that refuses to shift? Up until recently, your first impulse might have been to reach for a pill, but with the new over-the-counter codeine restrictions, many of us have begun searching for alternative and more natural pain-management measures.

Professor Marc Cohen, a pioneer of integrative and holistic medicine at RMIT University in Melbourne, says that while many of us still have a bias against so-called 'hippy' treatments, they've always been the best first line of defence for chronic-pain conditions and it's time we took them more seriously.

"From taking a hot bath to relieve aches to applying a cold pack - known to be an anti-inflammatory - to reduce swelling and bruising, these treatments are simply an extension of that."

Pain is the body's warning signal that something is wrong and should therefore be investigated thoroughly by a healthcare professional before beginning any kind of treatment - pharmaceutical or otherwise. But while you're in the doctor's office, it could also be worth discussing whether any of the following drug-fee pain-relief options might work for you.

A review published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine pooled results from 29 studies involving close to 18,000 chronic pain sufferers and found those who had acupuncture (as opposed to 'sham' acupuncture or none at all) decreased their pain scores by almost 50 per cent. Another study - led by Cohen and his team at RMIT - looked at more than 500 patients in emergency departments around Melbourne, and found that acupuncture was as effective for them as taking pain medication for lower-back aches and ankle sprains.

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2. Cognitive behaviour therapy

Best for:

Chronic pain conditions such as back pain, osteoarthritis, nerve damage and cluster headaches.

How it works:

CBT is a popular form of talk therapy that helps you develop skills to transform negative thoughts, and ultimately change the way you think about pain. While the physical pain may remain, CBT improves coping mechanisms so its impact is lessened.

Evidence that it works:

According to a study in JAMA Internal Medicine, researchers found CBT to be more effective than standard treatments for those with body-wide chronic pain. Meanwhile, a study at the University of Toronto in Canada found that patients who completed 20 sessions of CBT over a 10-week period experienced a significant decrease in symptoms of pain, pain disability, anxiety and depression.

3. Yoga

According to a study published in the journal Spine, people with lower-back pain who did two months of twice-weekly yoga reported a 42 per cent reduction in pain levels and a 46 per cent reduction in their depressive symptoms.

This echoes findings from the University of York in the UK, which revealed that regular yoga practice resulted in less pain and more confidence in daily tasks that had been unmanageable.

"There's a school of thought that putting yourself in these poses teaches you to be comfortable in uncomfortable situations.

In time, this leads to increased resilience when faced with other episodes of pain," Cohen says.

4. Hydrotherapy

Hot water relaxes muscles and reduces the force of gravity that compresses joints, offering support for sore limbs. It's also known to decrease swelling and inflammation.

Evidence that it works:

A UK review of hydrotherapy's effectiveness in the management of rheumatoid arthritis found that it has a positive role in reducing patients' pain levels.

Meanwhile, a study of people with chronic lower-back pain, which was published in the Australian Journal of Physiotherapy, showed that having three treatments of hydrotherapy per week for four weeks reduced pain and increased spine mobility, with lasting benefits in more than 70 per cent of cases.

Is turmeric the new painkiller?

Arthritis sufferers, watch this space. According to findings published in the Journal of Medicinal Food, taking turmeric extract for eight to 12 weeks can reduce pain and inflammation symptoms related to arthritis as it acts in a similar way to the common pain-relief medication ibuprofen. "We know [turmeric is] an analgesic and anti-inflammatory similar to many traditional pain relief products used today," Cohen says. "But instead of harming your gut [like these products can], it supports it."